Anna led us all down to the creek and showed us how to tie off some floats to branches overhanging the water. I had chosen a giant pizza slice to lay on. Anna had a flamingo with an obnoxious head sticking up, and Lillian had a unicorn that she could ride.
We anchored off like Anna had shown us, and it allowed our rafts to center in the middle of the stream while staying right in the path of the sun. The heat of the sun’s glow countered the crisp water that splashed on us—or was splashed onto others by me more than likely. Let’s not lie; I was making trouble that evening. Lillian let her floaty bounce next to mine so we could be closer.
At one point, I looked over, and she had fallen asleep, leaning forward onto the head of the horse so the sun could gently stroke her back. She must have always been exhausted with all the hard work she did.
We must have stayed there until midnight. Even more guests had come down, too, so it was more like a barbecue than anything else. Someone had made a campfire on the beach of the creek, and the crowd set up chairs around it. The smell of s’mores wafted around us and made our stomachs growl with the scent of marshmallow and chocolate.
Once the air became too cold to stay in the water anymore, we shivered our way over to the beach and joined the party. Anna had smuggled away Mr. Frey’s battery-operated radio, and the music brought the party to life.
Anna and Lilly challenged one another to a s’mores eating contest. And by the end of the night, I was pretty sure Anna had won after fourteen of them were devoured. Lilly could barely make it past nine. Who could blame her? I couldn’t tolerate all that sugar. Though I did have quite a few beers.
All in all, Lillian and I had agreed that the night was perfect, and we had even snuck downstream to enjoy a quick kiss under the starlight on the rocky bank. I loved the way her cheeks glowed with blush, and Lillian commented on how my eyes sparkled when I looked at her. We were entwined heart and soul and agreed we wouldn’t have it any other way.
That was when it dawned on me, and I finally agreed with what Mr. Frey had said during one of our fishing trips. It had made sense then, but now I actually felt it—simplicity was key. I had everything that I needed right there. No extra technology. No stressful work. No miserably suffocating city.
All I needed was Lilly and some fresh air.
10
Lillian
Morning must have been my favorite time of day at Rosemary Farm. Sure, every day was nice, and the hustle and bustle of business was comforting, but there was something about the silence of morning in the country that soothed my soul when I didn’t even know I needed it.
The birds weren’t singing yet. The sun wasn’t even over the crest of the mountain in the east. The only light that the farm was receiving was being filtered through the clouds from the other edge of the world as everything turned closer to daytime. It felt like a secret land, only made for me to experience, and I enjoyed the infrequent time that I had it.
The air was cool and crisp. I could smell the scent of fall just barely at the tip of an inhalation. It was spicy and let me know what was just beyond. I enjoyed the hint at what was coming in the next chapter of life but also the stagnation that was long summer days.
Everything seemed perfect. In the city, everything always smelled the same. It was drab and gray and often literally quite toxic. In the summer, it was the same scent but hot; in the winter, it was the same scent but cold. There was never any change because nothing in the city ever shifted despite the massive amount of people. Sure, winter came and went, and spring came through, but when there was no “nature” to experience, the seasonal changes were just inconveniences.
I was out at the barn, as I usually was before the rest of the world woke up. Blotches and I were spending some quality time together before she was expected to get to work just like I was. She was due out in the field to lead around the younger saddle training horses who would be integrated into riding programs the next year. I had already finished brushing her glossy snow and chocolate coat and had moved on to her crystal-white mane.
I loved going through and making sure there wasn’t a single knot in her hair. When it was perfect, it moved like a single sheet, rippled with each step she took, and she looked glorious. Not to say she didn’t always look great, but she cleaned up even more than I had thought possible.
Blotches was busy eating her breakfast. We stood quietly in her stall, and she munched loudly on molasses oats. I was doing one last pass through her mane when I noticed her ears perk up, and she removed her snout from her bucket, a few oats falling off into the hay around her hooves.
I turned to look behind me, out the entrance of her stall. My mouth dropped open, finding Andre standing there, holding a beautiful bouquet of flowers in front of his face. It was a bouquet from the field on the farm rather than from the gardens that everyone tended. They looked rustic and dry and gorgeous for the season.
Right in the middle of the arrangement was a giant sunflower, almost as big as my face. The leaves and blades of grass added to the bunch to fill it out rustled as Andre lowered it to give me a smile.
“Good morning. I picked a sunflower because that was on your corsage at prom…” His voice was sheepish and quiet. “I know they’re your favorite.”
My heart swelled. I knew he had grown as a person while he was at the farm. I could see it in everything he did. I enjoyed watching him learn new things about himself, but I didn’t have any idea that Andre could ever be so thoughtful and sweet. My eyes burned with tears, happy tears, but tears, nonetheless.
“Thank you so much.” I choked out, not intending to do so. I shook my head, not believing that he had put so much thought into a bouquet. “When did you get so good with flowers?”
I took them from him and gave them a deep sniff. The late-season pollen tickled my nose.
“I went to every flower forming class Mrs. Frey held. I learned how to keep them fresh and happy until delivery and how to make them look perfect around your target piece. I have wanted to make this for you for a while, but I was nervous.”
Andre? Nervous? He really wasn’t the person I thought he was anymore. He had never been nervous about anything for as long as I could remember—whatever he wanted to do, he did it or got it or made it happen.
“I love it. These are so beautiful.” My heart filled, and as I was turning to place the bouquet in a hook on Blotches’s stall, I felt his hand on my hip. It was so soft, such a delicate feeling, but it was there.
“I’m glad you like it.” His voice was grumbly and as smooth as satin.
I had no idea he had approached me so quickly and had gotten so close. Andre’s breath was on the back of my ear, and my hair tickled my skin, blowing as he spoke.
My skin prickled, and I turned to face him, looking up into his chestnut-brown eyes. “Andre, why are you out here so early? No one else is up yet.”
His fingers tightened ever so slightly on my hip, caressing the shape of my pelvic bone under my jeans. His thumb stroked the soft cotton of my blouse. “That’s why. I thought it might be nice to have some time alone.”
His nose grazed against my forehead, nuzzling me ever so softly. His lips barely touched my skin, but I could feel the heat of him against me, nonetheless.
My heart started pounding in my throat. I had wished our time could be a little more private. The time at the creek was terrific, but with people all over the place, we had no space for ourselves. When Andre would come over to my house in the evening, there was an awkwardness that, while not impeding a friendship, was still there. Was it heavy sexual tension that neither of us was ready to address?